The present invention relates to safety cables for trailer hitches and more particularly to a biased cable mechanism for trailer hitches.
Trailers are commonly used for towing any of a number of objects including boats, snowmobiles, recreational vehicles, and the like. Trailers are conventionally coupled to a towing vehicle via a tongue and hitch interface. In general, forward extending frame rails of a trailer include a tongue fixedly attached thereto. Traditional tongues include a ball socket that interfaces with a ball of the hitch for providing a primary connection therebetween. The ball and socket interface enables a degree of independent movement of the trailer, relative to the vehicle, for turning or other movement of the trailer relative to the vehicle.
A secondary, or safety, connection is also traditionally provided by at least one chain, but preferably a pair of chains. One end of each chain is anchored to the trailer and the free ends are attached to a vehicle structure, such as a hitch portion, via a hook or some other selective attachment device. Such chain attachments, however, retain particular disadvantages. These disadvantages stem from the fact that the chains dangle between the trailer and vehicle. One disadvantage is the noise generated by the free-dangling chains contacting either the tow vehicle or the trailer. A second disadvantage is that this contact may result in damage to either the trailer or tow vehicle. A third disadvantage is that the free-dangling chains may drag on the road surface during towing, thereby damaging the chains and compromising their safety function. A final disadvantage of such free-dangling chain interconnections is the potential for the chain connection with the vehicle to become undone as a result of excessive free motion of the chain during travel.
Therefore, it is desirable in the industry to provide an improved apparatus for providing a secondary connection between a trailer and a tow vehicle. The improved apparatus should eliminate the above-described disadvantages associated with traditional secondary connection apparatuses.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a biased cable or chain mechanism for use with a trailer having a frame and a trailer hitch. The biased cable mechanism includes a housing, a first cable having a first end fixed to the housing, a second end extending from the housing, and a first biasing member having a first end operably engaged with a mid-length portion of the first cable and a second end fixed to the housing for enabling resilient extension of the first cable from the housing.
Preferably, the biased cable or chain mechanism also includes a second cable having a first end fixed to the housing, a second end extending from the housing, and a second biasing member having a first end operably engaged with a mid-length portion of the second cable and a second end fixed to the housing for enabling resilient extension of the second cable from the housing.
The present invention further provides a trailer selectively attachable to a vehicle, including a frame comprising a first hollow frame rail, a trailer hitch fixedly attached to the trailer and selectively attachable to the vehicle for providing a primary connection therebetween, and a first biased cable mechanism fixedly disposed within the first hollow frame rail. The biased cable mechanism includes a housing, a first cable having a first end fixed to the frame rail, a second end extending from the housing, and a first biasing member having a first end operably engaged with a mid-length portion of the first cable and a second end fixed to the housing for enabling resilient extension of the first cable from the housing, wherein the first cable is selectively attachable to the tow vehicle for providing a secondary connection between the trailer and the tow vehicle.
Further areas of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. It should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating the preferred embodiment of the invention, are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.